Browsing by Author "Hamunyela, Miriam N."

Now showing 1 - 6 of 6
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    A critical analysis of parental involvement in the education of learners in rural Namibia
    (2008) Hamunyela, Miriam N.; ;
    The role of parents in the education of learners as well as the relationships between and amongst parents and professional educators has long been of interest to researchers and practitioners at all levels of public and private education. The consistent findings that the involvement of parents positively influences educational quality and learners’ academic achievement are well documented. However, the findings also concluded that parental involvement is difficult to implement in rural schools and its practices are more likely to take root in schools that serve urban and suburban populations than in schools that serve rural and low-income populations. Moreover, in most schools where parental involvement is functional, parents are more involved in non-academic activities than academic activities. Against this background, it can be stated that there is insufficient empirical research-based information on whether and how parental involvement in academic education of learners can be practised in economically distressed contexts, especially in Namibia. Therefore, the current study intended to critically analyse whether and how do professional educators and parents of rural lower primary schools in Namibia perceive, think about and practise involvement in the academic education of learners. The framework of this study is based on Critical and Ecological Theories. The Ecological Theory regards both parents and schools as valuable contributors to children’s learning. The critical theory claims that there is no absolute knowledge that people can grasp. All people encounter are opinions. Hence, this study challenged a long held ideal and belief of the capitalist culture in regard to positioning activities, and knowledge and resources of poor families as subordinate. The study employed a mixture of quantitative and qualitative methodological research designs. A survey about professional educators’ perceptions on parental involvement was sent to 205 schools (of which 87 responded) to collect quantitative data for Phase 1 of the study. Frequency analysis was done to identify the meaning of the quantitative data. The analysis of quantitative data grouped schools into 3 groups (high, intermediate and low) according to their levels of practising parental involvement. Six schools (2 per group) were selected for Phase 2 of the study. Interviews were conducted among 18 professional educators and 12 parents of the six schools to collect qualitative data on their perspectives, attitudes and practices of parental involvement. Content analysis was made use of to explore meaningful aspects and indicators of parental involvement in lower primary schools in Ohangwena Region. The following indicators revealed by the professional educators’ and parents’ reported experiences of parental involvement practice qualify the researched schools to be regarded as demonstrating parental involvement in learners’ academic education: conducive climate and respectful relationship; provision of educational opportunities to parents; use of community resources; provision of opportunities for technical support to parents; use of various and possible communication options; power sharing with parents and encouraging them to actively participate in decision-making bodies; and professional educators’ positive attitude towards involvement.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Perceptions of professional educators on parental involvement in the education of lower primary learners in rural Namibia
    (Namibian Educational Research Association (NERA), 2008) Hamunyela, Miriam N.; Bender, Gerda C.; Fraser, W.J.
    Many research articles reported about the consistent findings that the involvement of parents in education of learners is more likely to take root in urban than in rural schools. Moreover, most schools where parental involvement is functional, parents are more involved in non-academic than academic activities. In this article a survey of whether and how professional educators (N=146) of rural lower primary schools in northern Namibia (purposive sampling) perceive and practice parental involvement in the academic education of learners (Grade 1-3) was done. The current trend exposed by this study demonstrates the potential of rural lower primary schools in practising parental involvement. Therefore, strengthening rural schools’ initiatives to network with parents and other potential stakeholders for learners’ education seems to be a sensible recommendation.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Practitioners’ experiences of the implementation of sustainable development in the institutions of higher learning in Namibia
    (2014) Hamunyela, Miriam N.; Kasanda, Choshi D.; Kanyimba, Alex T.
    The aim of this article reports results of the study that examined the experiences of the practitioners in Namibian Higher Education institutions on the implementation of Education for Sustainable Development. Although the article demonstrated that lecturers in the Namibian Higher Education Institutions view education for sustainable development as cross-cutting discipline that should be the responsibility of all lecturers, it seems that lecturers do not teach it collaboratively, as required by international bodies. The members of institutions’ management should inspire and motivate the idea of sustainability and environmental awareness, and actively promote the transformation of society through the adoption of a policy and action plan on education for sustainable development.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Recycling errors in the language classroom
    (University of Namibia, 2015) Lumbu, Simon D.; Smit, Talita C.; Hamunyela, Miriam N.
    This paper relates to the findings of a study on the constraints encountered by teachers in teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) in rural combined schools in the Oshana region. Errors and mistakes are as some the major constraints that teachers encounter in language teaching. While mistakes are usually at the surface of the speaker’s language awareness, errors are usually more internal. Many factors such as L1 interference can account for the occurrence of errors in a learner’s language use. It is argued that a consistent reinforcement of errors results in error fossilization. Even though Proponents of the Communicative Language Teaching approach have emphasised the significance of errors and mistakes in the language teaching and learning process, the role of teachers in the cycle of errors in the language classroom has been over-looked.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    To integrate or not: Exploring the prospects and challenges of integrating indigenous knowledge at the University of Namibia
    (University of Namibia Press, 2015) Chinsembu, Grace M.; Hamunyela, Miriam N.
    Namibia has a population of about 2.1 million people of which 87.5% belong to one of nine main indigenous ethnic groups: Aawambo (50.0%), vaKavango (9.0%), Ovaherero (7.0%), Damara (7.0%), Nama (5.0%), Lozi (4.0%), San (3.0%), Baster (2.0%) and Tswana (0.5%) (UNDP, 2000). In Namibia, ethnic identity is stronger than national identity, with 75% of Namibians feeling much stronger ties to people of their own ethnic group than to fellow compatriots of other ethnic groups (Shaw- Taylor, 2008). Undoubtedly, a lot of indigenous knowledge is embedded within these strong ethnic and cultural precincts. Over the past two decades, many Namibian policy makers and knowledge workers have begun to realize the importance of indigenous knowledge in the country’s development process. In 2011, the Polytechnic of Namibia hosted a three-day conference on the technology of indigenous knowledge under the theme, ‘Embracing indigenous knowledge systems into a new technology design paradigm’. During this conference, Namibians were urged to nurture the knowledge of their ancestors and ensure that it is protected and preserved. At the University of Namibia (UNAM), the Multidisciplinary Research Centre (MRC) conducts annual indigenous knowledge symposia. The MRC also has a research programme on indigenous knowledge systems (IKS), which is funded by the Ministry of Education (ME). Nowadays, more plans are being devoted to the documentation of indigenous knowledge before it disappears.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Views and preferences of parents, teachers and principals on the implementation of the language policy in primary schools in Namibia
    (University of Namibia, 2012) Mostert, Louise; Hamunyela, Miriam N.; Kasanda, Choshi D.; Smit, Talita C.; Kangira, Jairos; Zimba, Roderick F.; Hengari, Job U.; Veii, Kazuvire R.
    The language policy of schools in Namibia states that from grade 1 to grade 3, learners should receive education in their mother tongues. The mother tongue becomes a subject from grade 4 onwards while English takes over as the medium of instruction. This paper presents the views of parents, teachers and principals and parents on how this policy is implemented in three schools studied in the Khomas region. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews from one urban school, one peri-urban school and one rural school. The fi ndings of the study refl ect diff erent language preferences between parents and teachers, the latter favouring English and the former advocating the mother tongue as